Torah Tuesday - Acts 1-2
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- Опубліковано 7 вер 2024
- Torah Tuesday is a weekly series in which I share brief insights from the first five books of the Old Testament. In this video, we consider potential echoes of the tower of Babel story from Genesis 11 in Acts 1-2. Follow me on Facebook or Twitter to keep up with my research.
Book mentioned: Beale, G. K., and D. A. Carson, eds. Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007.
Filmed at Prairie College by Carmen Imes.
Produced by Danny Imes.
Original music (Psalm 119:18) by Joshua Sherman.
Photo by Crystal Gillespie.
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There are so many divine reversals in the Bible. That would be a fascinating study. And lengthy.
Indeed!
Finally left FB and got to watch Torah Tuesday before Tuesday was over. Our church started Acts this past Sunday and focused on verses 1-11 so this is very timely indeed. The parallels are there to be seen by those who are paying attention. Thanks for drawing our attention to them. As another poster commented, Dr. Heiser sees Pentecost as the first step in the reversal of Babel and Paul's insistence on getting to Spain as his attempt to take the gospel to the "ends of the earth" and the final nation from Gen 10. Very cool.
Yes! I agree with Dr. Heiser on this!
Thank you much appreciated by me ❤.
You are so welcome!
WOW!! I have never thought of such a connection, a lot of food for thought here.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I love it! I felt the same way about this connection!
Thanks, Ryan!
Wooow, very intriguing connections! Dr. Heiser sees some of the same connections, namely the reversal of Babel.
Nice!
This cyclic view and understanding of life is very much a Semetic truth culturally. It is also something repeatedly done throughout the biblical text. I think that gives additional credence to seeing a cycle repeated and seeing it inversely done is again completely in keeping with other biblical text. Good job :)
Good point!
This was incredible and eye opening! Thank you!
So glad!
LOVED this episode Carmen, so excited for this Bable series. Something I learned from Dr Heiser is that Acts 2:3 uses the same greek word "divide" (διαμερίζω) that is used in the LXX for Gen 10:25 for "when the earth was divided" as well as Deut 32:8 "when the Most High divided the nations and scattered them" -- clearly Acts is showing the storing of how Jesus is reclaiming the nations to fulfill the promise to Abraham that "in his seed all nations will be blessed" -- the Gospel is such a glorious message!
Oooo! Wonderful! Thanks for sharing this! I'm sure there's a lot more to see that what I've shared. My insights in this video were mostly based on reading the text in English and reflecting for a while.
Such great work you do. Bless you sister. I am excited by the connections from NT to OLD and back to new. First came across this concept from a small book from FF Bruce. O late Dr Michael Heiser, some others and now you. Awesome all.
Thanks for your comment, Charles! It is indeed exciting stuff.
Awesome!!!!!!
Thanks!!
Love this! I’m really developing a deep interest on the connection between the two testaments and your videos certainly help! Thank you!
Glad the videos have been helpful! I believe that reading the NT with the OT in mind helps it come to life!
Neat stuff! I appreciate your opening that contrasts what a commentary said with your own reading. Commentaries are definitely helpful, but we shouldn't take them as the final word on a text. We need to go to the text ourselves with a close reading to see what the author is saying. 📖
True! I. Howard Marshall (who wrote the section in the commentary on Acts) is right that there is no strong evidence of *direct* quotation of Genesis 11, other than isolated words such as "confuse" and "name." However, there are SO many thematic similarities that I don't think we can miss the connection. Using Richard Hays' criteria, the "volume" of the echo gets louder and louder when we take into consideration all these factors.
Very cool. I saw a short article on TGC about 1 Chronicles as being like the Acts of the OT. Might be an interesting study to investigate themes of Temple, Torah, the nations, and the Kingdom of God/Son of David parallels, perhaps?
Yes, Chronicles highlights the line of David, the temple, and proper worship much more than Samuel and Kings do. It's fascinating to compare them!
@@CarmenJoyImesPhD i assume you're also aware of what the Sages said about the words at Sinai splitting into 70 tongues as well?
Yes I notice another connection between Genesis 11 and Acts 1-2. They both fail to mention how great of a teacher you are! Happy New Year!
Haha! Glad you enjoyed the video!
Dr. Imes, thank you so much for dwelling for a while on Babel and on Luke/Acts. My apologies for these scattered thoughts: (a) The tongues of fire making each disciple a little Sinai for the going out of the new Torah of the Messianic Moses who ascended into the cloud and then poured out his Spirit. (B) Theologically, the sending of the Spirit is done upon the enthronement of the Messiah. (c) One thing I do not understand is why Babble is there at all. Why was it an important enough touchstone to be revisited by the birth of the church? (d) I read the glossolalia here not as a normative sign to be repeated but as a declarative sign of what this last days is about. But then later instances of it in Acts make no sense. (e) I like the order of events in Acts 2: God acts, the people are astonished, the church is tasked to explain it. (f) Pentecost was a grain festival; the first taste of the fruit of the in breaking new age. Then, of course, the argument about bread distribution. // Some random thoughts. But I would be particularly interested in your thoughts of Acts 2 as an extension of Sinai and why on earth the NT or anyone else cares about that odd event in Babel?
Babel was crucial to the OT storyline as a critique of the empire that held the people of Judah captive. Since they were again under the occupation of a foreign power in the days of the early church, I imagine that it was a strategic time to consider how God feels about cultural diversity. The Greeks had brought in a single language (Greek), and then the Romans brought in another (Latin), but it failed to extinguish the diversity of expression in the church.
God wanted his people to stay together! He wanted them to all repent and continue to walk as he would! The angels and ascending and descending got me ! How many times did that happen in new and Old Testament ?
Good question! That would be a great question to explore.
Dr. Imes thank you for helping us making the connection between Gen.11 and Act. 2. The first time I heard about it was Dr. Michael Heizer but you helped to make a few connection I`ve missed. Keep going I`m learning. Really appreciated. How is the book writing going?
Glad you enjoyed it! Book writing is slow. I've been focusing on developing a couple of new courses at the Masters level. I'm about 60% finished with 'Being God's Image.' The Exodus commentary is on hold at the moment while I work on other projects.
@@CarmenJoyImesPhD All the best. May YHWH guide you with the projects and bless you and your family. Looking forward to the new book.
Thank you!
I have heard it said that the Temple in Jerusalem was a picture/model of the Garden of Eden- its design and decorations was to conjure up the image of Eden. The Pentecost event is a re-boot/un-doing/reversing of the sin in the Garden , the sin of the Watchers (Gen 6:1-4) and the Tower of Babel event. God is sending His imagers out/extending His Kingdom/His Garden to the ends of the earth. Not unlike what Adam and Eve were to do but got off track.
Yes, the temple (and the tabernacle before that) contains many echoes of Eden's garden. Some argue that even the layout of the tabernacle mirrored the sacred space of the garden. (See Michael Morales, 'Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?') As for the expansion of the kingdom, Greg Beale has made a solid case for this in 'The Temple and the Church's Mission')
@@CarmenJoyImesPhD thanks for the reference- helps to me to think like and Israelite
Just a minor question because the ziggurats intrigue me. She says the gods go up & down the staircase; I thought the priest was the one who ascended to the top to worship the god. Any good references to that worship system?
My understanding is that no ritual activity took place on the ziggurat, therefore no humans would climb it. It was entirely set apart for the gods to ease their travel between heaven and earth. If you're aware of any evidence to the contrary, I would love to hear about it!
Wonderful connections! Recently I noticed the the 3000 who were saved in Acts 2 and wondered if it was meant to contrast the 3000 who died at the original pentecost at Sinai. Is Acts 2 pulling double duty here and referring to both Babel and the Golden Calf episode?
Wow! I'll have to think that through! I hadn't noticed the number 3000 in Exodus 32. At Sinai they end up uniting in false worship, whereas in Acts they are united in true worship. I'll have to think more about that... Thanks!
Some connect Acts chapters 1 and 2 with the mystical languages spoken by the Greek priestesses whom their oracles consulted. As they entered a trance they babbled unintelligible words that were not the languages that had arisen as a result of the dispersal from Babel but were babble that only they could interpret. To put it in some way, they were a type of counterfeit languages inspired by divine entities that try to emulate the languages that emerged in the dispersion. Before any great event, kings and leaders consulted the forecasts of the oracles. In ancient Greek culture, these were fundamental elements and one of the most famous was located in the city of Delphi. The priests and priestesses answered the questions in the temple in an enigmatic way and full of symbolism. Main oracles of the Greek world: Oracle of Delphi in Greece, at the foot of Mount Parnassus. The sanctuary of the god Apollo has been, since ancient times, an important center of worship. The oracle was received through a woman called Pythia or Pythoness, who entered a state of frenzied ecstasy. It was thought to be the navel of the world, marked by the passage of two eagles released by Zeus from the ends of the world. That is why there is there a carved stone called an omphalion, or navel. Oracle of Didyma, city on the coast of Asia Minor. Oracle of Dodona in Epirus, Greece. The sacred precinct was in the mountains, south of Lake Pamboris. The oracle was located in a sacred oak that also served as a dovecote. Oracle of Olympia in the Greek city of Olympia, at Elis, in the eastern Peloponnese. The sanctuary of Zeus was famous. Oracle of Delos, a Greek island located in the Aegean Sea and considered by the ancients as the center of all of them. Oracle of Sibyl
Yes, I've heard of the oracle of Delphi. Quite a contrast with Pentecost, as all those gathered could understand!
Observing the possible revelation between Genesis 11 & Acts 2, also acknowledged in Heiser’s Reversing Hermon, how might Jacob’s dream in Genesis 28:12 reveal something similar?
I'd love to hear more about what you're thinking!
Thank you for the prompt reply & clarifying question. I was uncertain whether the “comment section” limits characters.
I’m currently enjoying Bearing God’s Name: Why Sinai Still Matters, and acquired & intend to read Being God’s Image: Why Creation Still Matters. Likewise enjoying (sharing w/ others) Torah Tuesday. Prayers of gratitude for how the Holy Spirit continues to work in your ministry 🙏🏻
As mentioned, I also enjoy the seminal works of the late Dr Michael S Heiser, especially Reversing Hermon: Enoch, the Watchers, and the Forgotten Mission of Jesus Christ.
From a Divine Council Worldview perspective, would it be hermeneutically accurate to connect the Genesis rebellion narratives (Gen 3, 6 & 11), as it pertains to Torah Tues UA-cams on Gen 11, together with Jacob’s dream in Gen 28:12?
In other words, given the significance of Jacob’s name & his notable character defects, how might Jacob’s dream (Gen 28:12) serve to illuminate his struggles, tying together the previous vignettes (Gen 3, 6 & 11), ahead of Jacob’s subsequent experience in Gen 32:24-30? (Yahweh’s mercy & grace, sovereignty & providence, forgiveness & compassion)
Moreover, if we (reader) looks back to Gen 1:3-5 & Gen 1:14-15, is this the revelation of the pre-incarnate Christ Jesus (former) & his heavenly beings (latter)?
Hopefully this comment was clearer than the last one.
Blessings 🙏🏻
P.S. Are you familiar with Chris Harrison’s artistic rendition of Biblical Cross References?
www.chrisharrison.net/index.php/visualizations/BibleViz
I’d welcome your thoughts on the following:
Does God Change?
The course of biblical history demonstrates that God’s dealing with mankind does change:
Operations
Administration
Strategy
God is unchanging in the following:
Character
Attributes
Purpose
To understand this apparent paradox is to understand free will in action:
God respects free will
At its core, free will has change embedded
The love of God has Him repositioning his dealing with mankind in an attempt to redeem & save - 2 Peter 3:9
I haven't read all of the comments here so you may have already answered this question. If not, are you familiar with John Walton's take on the Tower of Bable story?
Yes, I am! His teaching is what started me down this trail in the first place.
The Would the story of Jacob fleeing Esau, sleeping at Bethel and dreaming of a ladder set up reaching to heaven with angels ascending and descending like the tower at Babel plus Jesus referring to that event in John 1:51 be connected too?
Great thoughts! I would say that Jacob's "ladder" was the staircase of a ziggurat. And yes, it seems to me that Jesus is alluding to this. He is the axis that connects heaven and earth! Lovely insight!
Yay, first to comment!
Well . . . you'll have to get up earlier in the day if you want to be first (I hold all comments for review because sometimes the channel gets spammed with stuff we don't want to see). But so glad you watched and commented!